..."Evangelism is mission but mission is not merely evangelism" (Moltmann 1977)...."Mission is not a programme of the church but rather an attribute of God" (Bosch 1991).... "we are called to display what it means to be a colony of heaven mission embodies the total impact of the church on the world it's involvement with the social, political and moral life of the community and nation where it is placed" (Green 1990).... "The Church exists primarily for the sake of mission in the world. Mission is therefore the reason why the Church exists (Needham 1987).... "Mission comes first from the heart of God and we are caught up in it rather than initiating it (Bosch 1991)..."we seek to renew the face of the earth, all things and all peoples - that's mission" Archbishop Rowan Williams

Tuesday, September 07, 2010

View of Sin... #1

Wilhoit talks about true formation requiring a deep understanding that the 'sickness of the soul' or sin can not be cured through willpower alone. In other words he suggests that our view of sin has immense implications for our spiritual formation; these views exist at a variety levels. Using two continuum's he helps us to understand our approach to that which takes our sense of fullness.

View of Sin or the sin-sins continuum stretches between an emphasis on primarily observable sins i.e. lists of bad things you have done which he sees as external (sins), to a more internal orientation (sin), in other words, the actual awareness and self repulsion that you are the kind of person who would seek advantage by lying as you are by the actual lie.

View of Yearnings,Wilhoit asks:

"Do we as a people sense our longings as deep thirsts that only God can begin tosatisfy? Or do we think these desires for holiness should have disappeared forthe Christian, or that we can take care of them by our own efforts?"

How these questions are answered places us upon another continuum, ranging from an alignment with the idea that spiritual yearnings persist through to the concept that any inner thirsts are completely dealt with.

When the continuum's are laid over each other the resulting matrix helps in our understanding of how the view our sin and yearnings affects our approach to spiritual formation.

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About Me

URBANarmy – are the thoughts and theological reflections of an insignificant Salvation Army officer trying to show true hope, grace, love and freedom in a significant way.
URBANarmy -is a story of Missio Dei driving an all-encompassing grace-centred mission.
URBANarmy – is an open compilation of lessons learned from day to day ministry, dialogue and reading.
URBANarmy – is Gordon who finds total fulfillment in demonstrating the Kingdom of God.
URBANarmy – is now the fusion and exploration of 'mission' and 'spiritual formation' while trying to inspire a new generation of Salvation Army Officers as to their role in God's plan for His creation.